Most common questions about coronavirus and flying with Finnair

The global impact of coronavirus has left many customers with questions. Here are the most frequently asked, and advice for what you can do if your travel is affected.

18.05.2020

WHY DO YOU STILL CANCEL FLIGHTS OR EVEN WHOLE ROUTES?

As travel restrictions are being removed in different countries, air travel starts to recover gradually. We will gradually add frequencies and routes back to our network from July onwards. We intent to operate approximately 30% of our normal amount of flights in July, and we will add routes and frequencies month by month as demand recovers, taking into account the changes in travel restrictions in different countries.

However, the coronavirus situation still affects air travel significantly. Many countries have set travel restrictions, and our customers have postponed their travel. We have adjusted our traffic plan accordingly and will cancel flights from the previously in our booking engine published traffic plan also from 1 July 2020 to 31 March 2021.

HOW DO YOU CHOOSE THE FLIGHTS OR ROUTES TO BE OPERATED?

Asia and transfer traffic between Europe and Asia are of strategic importance for us, so we will start long-haul operations to key Asian destinations, and fly to key European centers. During the summer holiday season, we will also operate individual flights to some of the holiday destinations in Southern Europe. We will add routes and frequencies month by month as demand recovers, taking into account the changes in travel restrictions in different countries. Read more about our updated traffic plan here.

WHEN CAN I TRAVEL NORMALLY AGAIN? HOW DO I KNOW WHERE I CAN TRAVEL?

As travel restrictions are being removed in different countries, air travel starts to recover gradually. We will gradually add frequencies and routes back to our network from July onwards. We intent to operate approximately 30% of our normal amount of flights in July, and we will add routes and frequencies month by month as demand recovers, taking into account the changes in travel restrictions in different countries.

We are following the situation closely and will update new information on our website:

You can check flights and available seats through our booking engine that will be updated by 19 May.

We update information about changes in traffic and cancelled flights on the Travel updates page.

About travel restrictions in different countries, please go to IATA’s website.

HOW DO I KNOW IF MY FLIGHT IS CANCELLED?

We’ll contact you personally via SMS and/or e-mail, if your flight is cancelled. Please go to Manage booking and check that we have your current contact information, so that we can reach you in case of disruption. We cancel flights from 1 July 2020 to 31 March 2021 gradually and will send the messages accordingly by 30 June 2020. We also update information about cancelled flights on Travel updates page.

I NOTICED THAT MY FLIGHT IS CANCELLED BUT I HAVEN’T GOT AN SMS. WHY?

We cancel flights from 1 July 2020 to 31 March 2021 gradually and will send the messages accordingly by 30 June 2020 as follows:

Flights cancelled in July: we contact you by 31 May

Flights cancelled in August: we contact you by 7 June

Flights cancelled in September: we contact you by 14 June

Flights cancelled on 1 October 2020 - 31 March 2021: we contact you by 30 June

We send an SMS and/or email to all customers whose up-to-date contact information we have. Please go to Manage booking and check that we have your contact details.

WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS, IF MY FLIGHT IS CANCELLED?

If your flight is cancelled, you can change your travel dates for later or apply for a refund for your unused flight ticket and extra services you’ve purchased. We also do our best to find you an alternative Finnair flight to your destination. You can read more about your options on Travel updates page.

CAN I CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES OR APPLY FOR A REFUND ALREADY BEFORE I’VE RECEIVED THE CANCELLATION MESSAGE?

You can change your travel dates online at Manage booking or through our customer service already before you’ve received a message about a flight cancellation.

When your flight is on the list of entirely cancelled routes, you can cancel your booking at Manage booking and then apply for a refund by filling this form already before the cancellation message has been sent. In other cases, please wait for the cancellation message and then cancel the booking and apply for a refund online or through our customer service.

HOW DO I CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES?

The easiest way to change your travel dates is via Manage booking. However, there are some exceptions when you can’t make the change yourself. When you have booked your trip through a travel agency or tour operator or you have a group booking, please contact your agency to make changes. Our customer service will help you with reservation changes, if you have purchased your flight with a combination of money and Finnair Plus points, if your flight is already cancelled from our systems and you have received a cancellation message or if you have upgraded your flight with money or tier benefit.

WHY CAN’T I MAKE CHANGES TO MY RESERVATION THROUGH MANAGE BOOKING?

You can’t make changes through Manage booking, for example if

you have a group booking.

you have booked your trip through a travel agency or a tour operator.

you have purchased your flight with a combination of money and Finnair Plus points.

your flight is already cancelled from our systems and you have received a cancellation message.

you have upgraded your flight with money or a tier benefit.

When you have booked your trip through a travel agency or tour operator or you have a group booking, please contact your agency to make changes. In other cases, our customer service will help you. We are sorry if our customer service is congested.

WHEN DO I NEED TO CHANGE THE TRAVEL DATES AT THE LATEST?

If your flight is cancelled between 1 July 2020 and 31 March 2021, you can change your travel dates and travel until 31 May 2021. Please make the change before the departure of your flight.

When your flight will be operated and you’ve made your booking on 1 April – 30 June 2020, please change your travel dates latest 7 days before your flight. If you booked your ticket before 1 April 2020, you can make the change until the departure of your flight.

HOW CAN I APPLY FOR A REFUND?

To apply for a refund for your unused flight ticket, please cancel your reservation first at Manage booking and then apply for a refund using our refund form. You can do this until the end of 2020. If you were unable to cancel your booking online, our customer service will help you in cancelling the booking and with the refund.

Please note that if we haven’t cancelled your flight but you wish to cancel your reservation, refund will be according to the ticket rule.

HOW AND WHEN WILL YOU PAY ME MY REFUND?

Due to a high volume of refund requests, we currently have delays in our refund handling. The handling time is approximately 8 weeks, and in some cases it can take even 12 weeks. We are extremely sorry for the inconvenience this causes you. We will pay the refund to the same credit card account or to another payment method that was used to purchase the ticket. You can also choose a Finnair gift voucher as a refund option, when you have paid your ticket fully with money, meaning through online banking or credit card. We send you the voucher within 4 weeks.

YOU OFFER FINNAIR GIFT VOUCHER AS A REFUND OPTION. WHY SHOULD I CHOOSE IT?

When you apply for a refund for your unused flight ticket due to the coronavirus situation, you can choose to have your money back to your bank account or credit card or a Finnair gift voucher. The voucher is valid for one year. Please make the reservation during the validity of the voucher, but you can travel also later. The voucher is not personal, so you can give it to someone else or purchase flights for others as well. We send you the gift voucher within 4 weeks. Please note that you can choose the gift voucher as a refund option, when you have paid your ticket fully with money, meaning through online banking or credit card. More information is here.

WILL YOU REROUTE ME TO MY DESTINATION, IF MY FLIGHT IS CANCELLED?

We do our best to re-route your journey when there are alternative Finnair flights to your destination during your time of travel. As the availability of alternative flights is limited, re-routing may take time, and on some routes availability of alternative flights is very limited. If there is availability and after we’ve re-routed your journey, we’ll send you your new flight information via SMS and/or email. You can also find your updated travel plan and other possible flight options via Manage booking.

CAN I MAKE CHANGES TO MY REROUTED JOURNEY?

Yes, you can make changes to your rerouted journey if you wish. You can change your travel dates or cancel your reservation through Manage booking or our customer service.

ALL FLIGHTS TO MY DESTINATION ARE CANCELLED. CAN YOU REROUTE ME TO A NEARBY CITY?

Please contact our customer service to check this possibility.

ONLY MY OUTBOUND/INBOUND FLIGHT IS CANCELLED. WILL MY OTHER FLIGHT BE CANCELLED AUTOMATICALLY AND DO I GET A REFUND FOR THE WHOLE JOURNEY?

If only your outbound or inbound flight is cancelled, you can apply for a refund for your whole journey, when both flights are on the same ticket. The flight that is not cancelled is active in your reservation, but you can still apply for a refund for the whole journey.

WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS, IF I DON’T WANT TO TRAVEL DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS SITUATION?

We want to offer you flexibility for making reservation changes and have updated our ticket change policy. Please see more details on the Travel updates page. If we haven’t cancelled your flight but you wish to cancel your reservation, refund will be according to the ticket rule.

CAN I CANCEL MY RESERVATION AND GET A REFUND?

If your flight is not cancelled and you choose to cancel your reservation, the refund depends on your ticket type.

CERTAIN DESTINATIONS ARE IN YOUR TRAFFIC PLAN BUT THERE ARE TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS. CAN I CANCEL MY BOOKING AND GET A REFUND?

You can apply for a refund for the unused part of your flight ticket, if you can’t travel to your destination due to travel restrictions.

CAN I CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES MORE THAN ONCE?

Yes, you can. You can do it online at Manage booking, and if needed our customer service can help you.

If your flight is cancelled between 1 July 2020 and 31 March 2021, you can change your travel dates and travel until 31 May 2021. Please make the change before the departure of your flight.

When your flight will be operated and you’ve made your booking on 1 April – 30 June 2020, please change your travel dates latest 7 days before your flight. If you booked your ticket before 1 April 2020, you can make the change until the departure of your flight.

WHY DO I NEED TO PAY EXTRA WHEN I CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES?

You can make changes without a change fee but if there is no availability in your original fare class for your new flight, you need to pay the fare difference between your original and new flight tickets.

UNTIL WHEN CAN I CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES?

If your flight is cancelled between 1 July 2020 and 31 March 2021, you can change your travel dates and travel until 31 May 2021. Please make the change before the departure of your flight.

If your flight is operated but you want to change your travel dates, you can check the reservation calendar and your options through Manage booking. Also, our customer service can assist you with the dates.

I POSTPONED MY TRAVEL TO A LATER DATE AND NOW MY ORIGINAL FLIGHT IS CANCELLED. CAN I NOW GET A REFUND, IF I DECIDE NOT TO TRAVEL?

If your ticket type allows refunds, you can apply for a refund. However, you are not entitled to a refund based on your original flight being cancelled.

I HAVE AN INFANT IN MY RESERVATION. HOW CAN I CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES, IF MY CHILD IS NOT AN INFANT ON MY NEW TRAVEL DATE ANYMORE?

In this case, please contact our customer service.

I BOOKED MY FLIGHTS THROUGH A TRAVEL AGENCY. CAN I CHANGE MY RESERVATION THROUGH FINNAIR?

If you booked your flights through a travel agency, like ebookers, please primarily contact them to make changes to your reservation.

I CAN’T CHANGE MY TRAVEL DATES MYSELF OR REACH YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE. CAN I DECIDE NOT TO TRAVEL AND APPLY FOR A REFUND LATER?

If your flight is cancelled, you can cancel your reservation and apply for a refund afterwards. In case your flight is operated, refund depends on the rules of the ticket you purchased.

HOW CAN I REACH FINNAIR CUSTOMER SERVICE?

We are at your service via phone, the chat on our website and in social media channels. We are sorry, if our customer service is congested due to the exceptional situation. You’ll find our contact information here. If you booked your flight via a travel agent, please contact them for refunds or to make changes to your reservation.

I AM TRAVELLING WITH MY PET BUT CAN’T REACH YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE TO BOOK THE SERVICE. WHAT CAN I DO?

Our customer service always needs to confirm a pet travelling. We are sorry if our customer service is congested. If you can’t reach us by phone, please try to chat with us on our website. You can start chatting by clicking the chat button in the right lower corner of the page.

IS IT SAFE TO FLY DURING THE CORONAVIRUS EPIDEMIC?

The safety and wellbeing of our customers is a top priority for us. We are doing everything we can to ensure healthy and hygienic travel for you also during the coronavirus epidemic. Read more on how we look after your health and safety on our flights and what we can do together. We also encourage you to follow authority guidance.

HAVE YOU PLANNED ANY ADJUSTMENTS TO FINNAIR PLUS PROGRAM?

We have extended the validity period of Finnair Plus points, and they will expire earliest on 30 September 2020.

We extended the active tracking period by six months and administered the change for all Finnair Plus tier members by the end of March. For example, if your tracking period ended on 30 April, we extended it to 31 October. Your next tier tracking period will start then and continue for 12 months. During the extended time you can continue accruing points and move up the tiers. We updated also the validity of for example upgrade benefits, so they match the new tier tracking end date.

We will update new information related to Finnair Plus program adjustments in early June.